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Elon Musk explains the delay for Tesla’s autonomous coast-to-coast trip
Elon Musk has finally explained why the company ultimately delayed its 2017 plan for a coast-to-coast autonomous drive, and why he stands firm on Tesla’s three-pronged Autopilot approach for full self-driving over LiDAR technology.
During the Q&A portion of Tesla’s Q4 earnings call, Romit Jitendra Shah of Nomura Instinet asked Musk for any updates on the company’s plans for a fully autonomous coast-to-coast drive. Responding to the inquiry, the Musk explained that Tesla is focused on developing a full self-driving suite that would work on all roads under any conditions — something that would have been compromised had Tesla forced the feat last year.
“We could have done the coast-to-coast drive, but it would have required too much specialized code to effectively game it or make it somewhat brittle and that it would work for one particular route, but not the general solution. So I think we would be able to repeat it, but if it’s just not any other route, which is not really a true solution,” Musk said.
When asked about the timeline for the coast-to-coast autonomous drive, the Tesla CEO stated that it might happen in three months, or “six months at the outside.” Musk further stated that the feature would be available for Model S, X, and 3 customers who purchased the Full Self-Driving (FSD) upgrade for their vehicles. The CEO did not confirm, however, if the feature would be rolled out to customers immediately after the coast-to-coast drive is accomplished, or if customers would have to wait before being able to access the feature.
Perhaps the most interesting part of Musk’s statements about FSD, however, came from David Tamberrino of Goldman Sachs. During the Q&A session, Tamberrino asked Musk about his comments on LiDAR technology, a particularly prominent feature of Tesla’s rivals in the self-driving field. Responding to the inquiry, Musk was firm in his stance that LiDAR is not needed for Tesla’s vehicles to achieve fully autonomous driving, even going so far as to state that rivals being dependent on the technology might be making a grave mistake.
“In my view, it is a crutch that will drive companies to a local maximum that they will find very difficult to get out of. They’re going to have a whole bunch of expensive equipment, most of which makes the car expensive, ugly and unnecessary. And I think they will find themselves at a competitive disadvantage,”
Musk further explained that utilizing sophisticated radar equipment is a far better option for FSD. Tesla is steadfast in using its three-pronged approach featuring redundant forward cameras, forward radar, and near-field ultrasonics will be key to the eventual mastery of autonomous driving.
Musk reaffirmed his stance on using this technology, as it allows vehicles to “see” through snow, rain, dust, and fog — conditions that even experienced drivers find difficult to drive on. Overall, Musk stated that he is optimistic about the development of Tesla’s autonomous driving suite. While Tesla’s CEO admitted that progress has been slow, he asserted that when the company achieves FSD, it would be something truly remarkable.
“It’s also one of those things that’s kind of exponential where it doesn’t seem like much progress, and suddenly, ‘wow.’ It will seem like well this is a lame driver. (Then,) like okay, that’s a pretty good driver. (Then,) like holy cow, this driver’s good,” Musk said.
It’s worth noting that Musk also stated that his beliefs in FSD, LiDAR, and radar technology might be proven wrong in the future. Musk did assert, however, that he is confident in his belief that Tesla’s non-LiDAR approach is the correct way to go.
Now perhaps I am wrong. In which case, I’ll look like a fool. But I am quite certain that I am not,” Musk said.
In a lot of ways, Musk’s statements about LiDAR and the delayed autonomous coast-to-coast drive makes perfect sense. As we noted in a previous report, Tesla’s focus on FSD technology is quite different than its competitors, in the way that the company is attempting to create a system that works under any conditions in any location. The leaders in the field, such as Waymo and GM, on the other hand, are pursuing something different, creating a system that works perfectly in a pre-programmed, set route.
Elon Musk
Elon Musk says Tesla will take Safety Drivers out of Robotaxi: here’s when
“The safety driver is just there for the first few months to be extra safe. Should be no safety driver by end of year.”
Tesla CEO Elon Musk said today that the company plans to completely eliminate Safety Drivers from its Robotaxi fleet, which differs from the Safety Monitors it uses.
Tesla’s Robotaxi platform utilizes employees in the front passenger seat during city rides in Austin and the driver’s seat of the vehicles during highway operations in Austin, as well as during all rides in the Bay Area.
Tesla adjusts Robotaxi safety monitor strategy in Austin with new service area
Musk said the presence of a Safety Driver “is just there for the first few months to be extra safe,” but there are plans to remove them in an effort to remove the crutches the company uses during the early stages of Robotaxi.
The CEO then outlined a timeframe for when it would remove the presence of an employee in the driver’s seat in both Austin and the Bay Area. He said there “should be no safety driver by end of year.”
The safety driver is just there for the first few months to be extra safe.
Should be no safety driver by end of year.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 4, 2025
Having a Safety Driver or Monitor has been a major point of criticism from Robotaxi skeptics and Tesla critics.
However, Tesla has maintained that its priority in the early stages is the safety of riders, which will keep things running; even a single negative incident could derail self-driving efforts as a whole, including those outside of the company.
Tesla executives have said their attitude toward safety is “paranoid,” but for good reason: an accident could set back the progress that it and many other companies, including rivals like Waymo, have made in the past few years.
For now, it might be a point of criticism for some, but it’s smart in the near term. Musk plans for Tesla to have Robotaxi operating for half of the U.S. population by the end of the year as well, so it will be interesting to see if it can maintain these timelines.
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Tesla is already giving Robotaxi privileges hours after opening public app
This morning, Tesla launched the app in the Apple Store, giving iOS users the ability to download and join a waitlist in hopes of gaining access.
Tesla is already giving Robotaxi privileges to those who downloaded the app and joined its waitlist just hours after it launched in the United States.
As the Robotaxi platform has been operating in Austin for several months, Tesla is now allowing the general public to download its app and call for a driverless ride in the city.
Tesla Robotaxi makes major expansion with official public app launch
The company previously sent invitations to select media outlets and Tesla influencers, seeking initial feedback on the performance of the Robotaxi platform.
There have been positive reviews, but, as with any Beta program, some mishaps have also occurred, although none have been significant.
As of the writing of this article, the City of Austin only lists one incident involving a Tesla Robotaxi, noting it as a “Safety Concern,” but not an accident or collision.
This morning, Tesla launched the app in the Apple Store, giving iOS users the ability to download and join a waitlist in hopes of gaining access.
Tesla is already granting Robotaxi access to several of those who have downloaded the app and gotten on the waitlist early:
Been getting a lot of messages from people who downloaded Tesla’s new Robtoaxi app last night and already have access to the company’s robotaxi and ride-hailing services. pic.twitter.com/xgbki1D3Lw
— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) September 4, 2025
With the launch of the public app, we were not too sure how soon Tesla would be able to initiate bringing more riders into the Robotaxi program. The immediate admittance for some riders just hours after the launch is a big positive and is surely a sign of strength for Tesla and its Robotaxi program.
What many will look for moving forward is the expansion of the geofence, which does not seem like a problem, as Tesla has already managed to do this on three occasions. The most recent expansion has expanded the service area to approximately 190 square miles.
People will also look for evidence of fleet expansion, a concern that has been a concern for many, especially since Tesla has not been completely transparent about it. They have revealed a recent service fleet growth of 50 percent, but there has been no specific number of vehicles mentioned.
News
Tesla explains why Robotaxis now have safety monitors in the driver’s seat
The update to Austin’s safety monitors became a point of interest among Tesla watchers on social media.
Tesla has provided an explanation about the presence of safety monitors in the driver’s seat of its autonomous Robotaxi units.
The autonomous ride-hailing service is currently being deployed in Austin and the Bay Area, with more cities across the United States expected to gain access to the service later this year.
Safety Monitors
When Tesla launched its initial Robotaxi program in Austin, the company made headlines for operating vehicles without a human in the driver’s seat. Even with this setup, however, Tesla still had safety monitors in the passenger seat of the Robotaxis. The safety monitors, which do not interact with passengers, have been observed to report issues and other behaviors from the autonomous vehicles in real time.
Safety monitors on the driver’s seat were also employed in the service’s Bay Area rollout, though numerous members of the EV community speculated that this was likely done to meet regulations in California. However, with the expansion of the Austin geofence, riders in Tesla’s Robotaxis observed that the safety monitors in the city have been moved to the driver’s seat as well.
Tesla’s explanation
The update to Austin’s safety monitors became a point of interest among Tesla watchers on social media. Longtime FSD tester Whole Mars Catalog, for one, speculated that the move might be due to Texas’ new regulations for autonomous vehicles, which took effect recently. Interestingly enough, the official Tesla Robotaxi account on X responded to the FSD tester, providing an explanation behind the safety monitor’s move to the driver’s seat.
“Safety monitors are only in the driver’s seat for trips that involve highway driving, as a self-imposed cautious first step toward expanding to highways,” the Tesla Robotaxi account noted.
Tesla has been extremely cautious with its autonomous driving program, particularly with the rollout of its Robotaxi service, which use Unsupervised FSD. This is quite understandable considering the negative media slant that Tesla is consistently subjected to, which could very well result in minute incidents or mistakes by Robotaxis being blown out of proportion.
Elon Musk says Tesla will take Safety Drivers out of Robotaxi: here’s when
Tesla is already giving Robotaxi privileges hours after opening public app
Tesla explains why Robotaxis now have safety monitors in the driver’s seat
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